Movie review 'Alludu Seenu': A predictable story, but good entertainment

A still from the film 'Alludu Seenu'

Alludu Seenu
Cast: Sreenivas, Samantha, Prakash Raj, Brahmanandam and others
Director: V.V. Vinayak
Rating: *** (3 stars)

Alludu Seenu, the debut movie of  Sreenivas, producer Bellamkonda Suresh’s son, enjoyed a lot of pre-release hype because the producer had roped in top technicians for this film. The film has been directed by V.V. Vinayak and has Samantha as the female lead.

Alludu Seenu (Sreenivas) and his uncle Narasimha (Prakash Raj) live in a village and they have a lot of debts. To escape from their debts, both decide to leave for Chennai, but land in Hyderabad after boarding a wrong train.

Meanwhile, Bhai (also Prakash Raj) is a big mafia leader in Hyderabad and Seenu who sees him realises that the don resembles his uncle. Seenu uses Bhai’s personal assistant Dimple (Brahmanandam) and mints money with his uncle posing as Bhai. And then Seenu falls in love with Anjali (Samantha) who is Bhai’s daughter. When both decide to get married, the truth about Seenu’s activities come out and Anjali starts hating Seenu.

In the meantime, Bhai decides to get Anjali mjarried to the son of his friend and mafia leader Bhanu (Pradeep Rawat) in Sharjah. The remaining story revolves around how Seenu finally gets his love and why the two — Bhai and Narasimha — look similar.

Vinayak has chosen a safe subject for the debutant. The subject is not new and it’s a typical Srinu Vaitla kind of entertainment. This film falls under the same category as Dhee, Ready and Badshah. The story is not new but director Vinayak handles it very well.

Moreover, even though the lead actor is a debutant, the film does have the presence of top technicians like cinematographer Chota K. Naidu and artistes like Prakash Raj and, Brahmanandam who are actually key players of this film.

As a debutant, Sreenivas has excelled in action and dances. His performance is good but he has to concentrate on his diction and also work on portraying emotions. Samantha plays his love interest and she looks glamorous throughout the film, especially in the songs. Brahmanandam plays a major role in this film as Dimple. He provides the much needed entertainment and enthralls with his mannerisms and dialogues. His scenes with Prakash Raj, especially in the second half, have come out well. Prakash Raj, who plays a double-role, has portrayed both characters with adequate variations demonstrating his experience and acting skills. Tamannah sizzles in a item number.

The film does have its drawbacks. The subject is very old and predictable and after the reason for Prakash Raj's dual appearance is explained, the story loses pace. There are a few boring scenes, for example the one in which Seenu takes Samantha to see her friends. The songs are nice, well choreographed and also shot in beautiful locations, but seem to appear in the wrong places.

This film is a great launch for a debutant. Vinayak, known for his mass films, has once again provided entertainment for masses. Brahmanandam’s comedy and Samantha’s glamour quotient may also help the film.